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Buildings Insurance-sewage damage.

sun-n-moon
sun-n-moon Posts: 141 Forumite
Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Combo Breaker
edited 12 January 2017 at 7:53PM in Insurance & life assurance
Bear with me, I'll try not to bore you.
I find sewage water under my floorboards and it is not coming through wall from next door. Next door [live in a semi] informed and they do nothing about it. I ring the council who come out and eventually with evidence from United Utilities issue an order to reluctant neighbour, who also has it under his floorboards and his house also stinks, but it does not seem to bother him, to get work done within three days. We are currently living upstairs in the bedroom since my house stinks and sewage is still building up as the neighbour keeps using his toilet which is emptying into the crawl spaces in both houses.
My buildings insurance means I have to pay the first £250 of any claim though this will be recovered from neighbours insurance, if they have any. Still waiting for them to confirm they are insured. If not I will have to pay the £250. I, stupidly, do not have contents insurance so my insurer will not, I presume, pay for damaged carpets suite, chairs etc.
Question. If neighbour has insurance can I go directly to them for compensation and will they entertain a direct claim for restitution for my contents?
Also Dynarod guy informs me that if their broken sewage pipe is deemed accidental damage my insurer will not pay. Is this correct?
Welcome any feedback. Thankyou.

Comments

  • FutureGirl
    FutureGirl Posts: 1,252 Forumite
    Eighth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    edited 12 January 2017 at 7:42PM
    You can't claim directly from his insurers, no.

    You would need to claim from your own insurers, and they may recover their costs from the neighbours insurers, but will only be successful in doing so if you can prove the neighbour has been negligent.

    Or you claim directly from the neighbour himself, but again as you're making the claim you'd need to prove they were negligent.

    Also the insurer can only do work on your property - where it the sewage coming from?
  • FutureGirl wrote: »
    You can't claim directly from his insurers, no.

    You would need to claim from your own insurers, and they may recover their costs from the neighbours insurers, but will only be successful in doing so if you can prove the neighbour has been negligent.

    Or you claim directly from the neighbour himself, but again as you're making the claim you'd need to prove they were negligent.

    Also the insurer can only do work on your property - where it the sewage coming from?
    It is coming from his broken soil pipe[at the elbow] at the side of his house and finding its way into the space under the houses. The consensus from the drain guys is pressure from the blockage caused the pipe to fail.
  • sun-n-moon wrote: »
    It is coming from his broken soil pipe[at the elbow] at the side of his house and finding its way into the space under the houses. The consensus from the drain guys is pressure from the blockage caused the pipe to fail.
    Can't help here (just referred you from the PPI Board), but I just wanted to say you have my sincere sympathies...
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